Zeit: The new authoritarianism

Authoritarian forces are on the rise around the globe: Austria, Poland, Turkey, Russia, USA... One cannot assume that these different developments are part of a big plan, each is caused by different circumstances. And while it is important to understand these reasons - they should not overshadow what unite those different cases. Because in the authoritarian offer is in fact the same everywhere: It promises a different political order, namely an unfiltered governance without institutional control and compromise - a new type of direct democracy, understood as a plebiscite confirming unity of government and people. This citizen is defined everywhere exclusively, along the lines of nation, ethnicity and/or religion. The authoritarian promise is: I feel your pain. I'll protect you. With me you come back to how it had been before. This is why one can and indeed must remove from power and destroyed the "detached elites", including their institutions (political parties, media, constitutional courts, "Washington", "Brussels" etc).

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Independent: This Vladimir Putin-Donald Trump kiss is going viral

Russian President Vladimir Putin and U.S. presidential hopeful Donald Trump are kissing on the side of a barbecue restaurant in Vilnius, Lithuania.

The mural, painted by local artist Mindaugas Bonanu, was unveiled by the co-owner of the Keule Ruke, Dominykas Čečkauskas, on Thursday. It has swiftly gained attention in both Lithuanian and international media.

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The Huffington Post: UN's Michael Møller Reveals 17 Facts That Will Change Your Understanding Of The Refugee Crisis

“When you look at the numbers, they are ridiculous,” Møller says. The number of refugees who have come to Europe represents a tiny population increase, he claims: “We’re talking about 0.2 per cent.” [...]

Møller thinks that one reason the current refugee disaster has been mishandled is because most of the refugees coming to Europe are Muslim. “Eighty per cent or so are Muslims, and this plays a role, because the narrative about Muslims has been incredibly negative, surprisingly so,” he laments. “Every Muslim is depicted either as a terrorist or just purely a criminal, which is completely unacceptable.”

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The National Interest: The Creeping Miltiarization of American Culture

In his 1961 farewell address, President Dwight D. Eisenhower warned of the growing influence of the “military-industrial complex” on American politics and policy. Interestingly, Eisenhower’s original formulation of the menace was the even more accurate “military-industrial-congressional complex.” (Emphasis added). Seeing how that network of special interests has worked its tentacles into so many aspects of American political and economic life in the intervening decades indicates just how prescient was Eisenhower’s warning. [...]

Americans are rapidly approaching the point where they must make a stark choice. Either the United States adopts a more circumspect role in the world—in part to preserve what is left of its domestic liberties—or those liberties will continue to erode (perhaps beyond the point of recovery) in the name of national security. That choice will determine not only how the United States is defended in the future but whether this country retains the values and principles that make it worth defending.

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USA TODAY: Women booed Polish minister over glass ceiling remark

A Polish government minister was booed and jeered at a women's congress for suggesting that the idea of a glass ceiling for women in business only exists in their minds.

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The New Yorker: Nice Museum. Where’s the Art?

The reasons for a museum to grow are many. Contemporary artworks—especially installations and performances—demand more varied spaces than those available in older museums. Also, it’s easier to obtain funding for a shimmering new structure than for an unglamorous renovation. Attracting art donations requires space—billionaire X must know that his Warhols, Bacons, and Hirsts will be out there for all to see. Finally, the hushed museum halls of yore evoke an era when the artists were mostly Western white men and the patrons were often the unscrupulously rich. (Some of this hasn’t changed.) The goal now is to welcome the widest possible audience for learning, socializing, and entertainment. That means event spaces, concert halls, film theatres, gathering places, and plenty of shopping. Among the most intriguing expansions is that of Tate Modern, whose towering addition on the Thames opens June 17th. Its ambition could hardly be loftier: to redefine the museum for the twenty-first century. [...]

During a recent press briefing, Tate Modern’s director, Frances Morris, spoke of the institution’s shift “from being a museum that people come to and look at, spend time in, to a museum that opens its doors to collaboration, conversation, and participation.” This is already evident in a floor plan of the extension: a majority of the ten new levels won’t contain art at all. There’s a panoramic viewing floor at the top, a level for the restaurant, another for learning and events, and one for the bar and shop, leaving the art to three floors, in addition to repurposed oil tanks in the basement for performances and installations.

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